Lack of consensus among political parties was the key stumbling block in holding simultaneous elections, the chief minister said while addressing a press conference which was convened as part of a nationwide plan to celebrate the saffron party’s Tripura win where it ended the 25-year-rule of the CPI (M).

indiaUpdated: Mar 05, 2018 14:42 IST

HT Correspondent

Hindustan Times, Chandigarh

Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar(HT File )

Haryana Vidhan Sabha elections will be held next year as per schedule and not simultaneously with Lok Sabha polls, Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar said on Sunday.

Lack of consensus among political parties was the key stumbling block in holding simultaneous elections, the chief minister said while addressing a press conference which was convened as part of a nationwide plan to celebrate the saffron party’s Tripura win where it ended the 25-year-rule of the CPI (M).

“Haryana assembly elections will be held when they are due,” Khattar, who assumed office in October 2014, said in response to a question. The chief minister said that discussions were on with other political parties on holding simultaneous polls under the ‘one-nation-one-election’ plan floated by the BJP. “But as long as there is a lack of consensus, holding simultaneous polls is not possible. This idea may see the light of the day in2024,” Khattar said, while pointing out that the issue was discussed in the recent meeting of BJP chief ministers that was chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He said constitutional amendment was also needed before holding simultaneous polls to Lok Sabha and state assemblies.

Khattar’s fresh statement on the issue is important in the backdrop of his earlier stance where he indicated that Haryana could opt for assembly polls along with the Lok Sabha elections. The assembly elections in Haryana are due by October 2019.

Khattar said that after his govt assumed office, employment had been provided to over 2 lakh people in the private sector.

Recruitment to 28,000 govt posts stuck due to court cases: Khattar

Meanwhile, in an apparent bid to blunt the opposition’s attack on his government during the Budget session that is set to start on Monday, the chief minister said that the recruitment to about 28,000 government posts is on hold due to court cases but the state government has provided jobs to over two lakh people in private sector.

During the 12-day long session, the Congress and the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) are likely to corner the Khattar-led BJP government on issues such as unemployment, law and order and the Sutlej Yamuna Link (SYL) canal. The Opposition has already made clear its intentions of “exposing” the BJP government’s alleged failure to fulfil the 2014 assembly election promises. “During the last three-and-a-half years, we have not only done well in providing jobs and skilling the youth of the state, but we also ensured merit, transparency and no nepotism in matters of recruitment,” Khattar told the media here. Of the total 55,000 government posts advertised, 17,300 candidates had been issued appointment letters, he said.

The CM said the recruitment to about 28,000 posts is pending due to litigation in courts. These posts of various categories were advertised by the Haryana Public Services Commission and State Staff Selection Commission since October, 2014. He said the recruitment for about 10,000 posts was being fast tracked.

“We have lived up to our credentials of transparency, openness and no nepotism in the recruitment process,” he said.

The chief minister said that after his government assumed office, employment had been provided to over 2 lakh people in the private sector, including 1.24 lakh in micro, small and medium enterprises.

He said investment of Rs 45,000 crore had been made and as a result of the MoUs inked during the Happening Haryana Summit, as many as 136 projects have already been set up with investment of Rs 18,000 crore.

He said out of the total target of 2.27 lakh, 1.17 lakh youth had been trained in different sectors, and, out of these, 37,134 had been placed in keeping with their specific areas of skilling.